A report from the GSM Association (GSMA) highlights a pressing issue for Nigeria and other Sub-Saharan African countries as the proliferation of mobile phones leads to an imminent challenge of electronic waste (e-waste).
GSMA’s recent ‘Mobile Economy Sub-Saharan Africa’ report projects that by the end of 2023, Sub-Saharan Africa will boast a staggering 1 billion active feature phone and smartphone connections.
This number is expected to surge further with the anticipated addition of over 200 million new devices by the end of 2027.
However, this growth in device numbers raises a significant concern regarding the surge in e-waste and the heightened consumption of natural resources within the region.
Nigeria, which currently holds the largest number of mobile subscriptions in Africa, with over 220 million connected lines as of August 2023, could potentially account for the region’s largest mobile e-waste problem.
In stark contrast to developed countries with well-established e-waste management systems, many African nations lag in this area.
To address this looming challenge, GSMA underscores that while the technical lifespan of a mobile device is between four and seven years, the average period of use is only around three years.
This discrepancy highlights that the primary hurdle to reducing waste lies in consumer behavior.
GSMA suggests that incentivizing consumers will be pivotal in tackling this issue, even though it might be complicated by various factors like affordability, information availability, social norms, and personal preferences influencing consumer choices.
The report also emphasizes the role of governments and industry players in implementing strategies such as building new channels for collecting, refurbishing, and reselling devices, as well as educating consumers and running awareness campaigns on sustainability.
Operators and other ecosystem players across Sub-Saharan Africa are already at the forefront of these efforts, working to promote circularity in mobile phones and digital devices.
GSMA further notes that device ecosystem players in Sub-Saharan Africa are adopting the circular economy concept in device manufacturing.
This involves producing phones with longer lifespans, using recyclable and recycled materials, and incorporating renewable energy in the production process.
These measures aim to reduce the number of devices discarded prematurely, facilitating sustainable transformation within the industry.
Adding to the concern, the European Chemical Society identified 30 elements commonly used in smartphones in November 2022.
Among these, 11 were flagged as elements with limited availability, which could pose risks to future supply.
Additionally, the unsustainable usage of seven elements found in smartphones could present serious risks within the next 100 years.
GSMA estimates that a refurbished phone can have an 87% lower climate impact than a newly manufactured phone.
Proper recycling of 5 billion mobile phones could recover a significant value of precious materials, including gold, palladium, silver, copper, rare earth elements, and enough cobalt to manufacture 10 million electric car batteries, estimated at $8 billion in worth.
In summary, the rapid growth of mobile phone usage in Sub-Saharan Africa comes with an urgent e-waste challenge that necessitates a shift in consumer behavior, industry practices, and government policies to ensure a sustainable and environmentally responsible future.
